Scranton’s world famous St. Patrick’s Day Parade happened over the weekend and, once again, I wasn’t there. It’s a big deal in these parts, and draws incredible crowds. But I don’t have much of an interest.
I did check it out a few years ago, just so I could say I’d been to one, and it seemed like roughly fifty percent of the attendees were drunk. And that’s even higher than at Harbor Freight Tools. The bars open at 7 am on “parade day,” and it’s reportedly a tradition for some to be there cheering while the doors are being unlocked.
It’s crazy. I can’t imagine starting to drink beer at 7 in the morning. I can understand still being up from the night before, swinging for the fences and blooping lagers, but not kicking things off during the bacon and eggs portion of the day. I think that borders on taking it too far.
When we attended our one parade here we were surrounded by jackasses wearing novelty headgear, hollering and blasting their beer breath against the sides of our faces. Some people were shirtless with their torsos painted green, and it was impossible to tell if they were men or women, young or old. And huge roars would go up as unknown members of the city council rolled past in pantsuits at 3 mph.
I just stood there blinking real fast, muttering, “Why am I here? Why am I here…?”
This is how old I am: The only way I could truly enjoy such an event is if it started around 4 in the afternoon, the weather was perfect, we had a reliable babysitter in place, and access to a dedicated car service. Even then, I’d probably be ready to go home after an hour, and slip into my cheeseburger sleeping pants.
It’s a sad state of affairs.
Speaking of beer, Toney and I went to Cooper’s on Friday evening, while the boys were off playing golf with ghost children at R.L. Stine High School. The place was slam-packed, and we had to sit at the bar with our shoulders in front of us, if you know what I mean.
I perused their snooty list of drafts, and decided I’d better go with something Irish, since it’s the season for such things. And after some hemming (I rarely haw) I decided on O’Hara’s Red. Yeah, it was OK, I guess. And my second pint was the new Yuengling Bock, which was also OK, I guess.
My selections were mildly disappointing this time (I plan to give the Bock a second chance), but I love the back bar at Cooper’s. It’s a beer lover’s paradise, hidden away in a darkened alcove.
I wish I was there, right now.
Yesterday members of the mailing list were notified of a very important research project we’ve taken-on, here at Surf Report Labs. And now I believe it’s safe to let the rest of the world in on it. Click here to view the Woodstock Death Count! And please use this knowledge for good, not evil.
Also, in a couple of weeks (or so), I’m going to have a special announcement to make, concerning a new joint venture between Metten and myself. We’ve still got a few bugs to work out of it (many bugs), but I think we’ll be ready to go by the first part of April. So, stay tuned. It’s gonna be fun.
And finally, I’ll leave you with a couple of questionable Questions, to close out the category.
First, I’d like to know about your eBay experiences. I have thousands and thousands of CDs boxed-up in our basement, amassed during the record weasel years, and I’m toying with the idea of trying to get rid of them through eBay. Therefore, I’ve been mildly fixated on the site, over the past couple of days.
And I was wondering, have you ever bought something extra-cool there? Have you sold an item, and made an inordinate amount of money from it? Have you ever been burned? What are your biggest eBay successes, and failures?
I can offer two stories, myself…
When we lived in California I often visited a used record store called Second Spin. They always had a massive bin, filled with 99 cent CDs. Predictably, almost all of it was discouraging crapola. But I’d found just enough good stuff there to make it mandatory that I check the section during every visit.
One afternoon I discovered a copy of a CD by a Texas band called The Reivers. It was their third album, the excellent End of the Day. I already owned it (I love the Reivers), but knew their stuff was rare and out of print. So, I snagged it.
When I got home I put the disc in a clean jewel box, and tossed the cracked and sticker-laden case that had come with it. Then I listed the CD at eBay, stating accurately that it was in “like new condition.”
Yeah, and the winning bid was $72, plus three bucks for shipping. I’d paid 99 cents! It’s my biggest eBay success, to date. I’ve tried to top it, but have never even come close.
And just so you know, the Reivers albums have since been reissued on CD, and are no longer rare. But back in the day, they were almost impossible to find — and I had all four. It had taken me many years to complete the set, and almost immediately they were re-released for $9.99 each. And so it goes…
Also, at eBay I bought an incredibly cool panoramic photograph of my hometown of Dunbar, WV, taken on September 23, 1924. It’s huge, more than three feet wide, and is crystal clear. I can even see my aunt’s house, and found out it used to have a wraparound porch. Who knew?
I think I paid less than fifty dollars for the thing, and it’s now framed and hanging in our family room. It’s definitely one of my greatest eBay successes.
Do you have any interesting stories to tell on the subject? Use the comments section below.
And what do you think about my plan to liquidate the mountain of old CDs in the basement? A bigger hassle than it’s worth? Most of it’s straight-up garbage, and probably wouldn’t even sell. But who knows? There might be some hidden jewels in there somewhere. One man’s Deee-Lite, is another man’s treasure.
Also, if you have any St. Patrick’s Day debauchery tales to tell, we’d like to hear those as well. I got nothin’, I’m afraid. But what about you? Have you ever gotten bed-shittin’ drunk in honor of an ancient religious leader? Tell us about it, won’t you?
And I’ll see you guys tomorrow.
Have a great day!
Tada!
St Pats 1st!
ah, hell, theres the luck o’ the Irish for ya.
fourth, damn it man!
TOP 10 WOOHOO!!! NOW I CAN READ THE UPDATE DOUBLE WOO HOO!!!
Good Afternoon and Happy St. Patrick’s Day Surf Reporters!!!
As a person of Scotch Irish decent, I have the propensity to enjoy the drink, occasionally imbibing a wee too much.
Worst drunk ever on a St. Paddy’s bender had to be the time I thought 13 shots of Jameson with 13 Bud chasers would be a good idea.
It wasn’t
Top Ten!!! Luck of the Irish!!
had a guitar body (fender mustang 1967) that had the neck plate on it with the fender cursive ‘F’ on it and the serial number. It’s just used to hold the neck on a simple metal plate with 4 holes for screws.
It went for over 80 bucks!!!!
Been doing eBay for years, only one bad deal.
m.
Maybe you could post the list of the cds here. I am often amazed at what people pay for things. I have some REM fanclub singles that go for over 100 dollars. When I got them, it cost 10 dollars a year to be in the REM fanclub.
TEN. barely.
Ten and change…
I’ve already drank so much that I’m having a hard time typing. It’s 1:03 in the afternoon.
My daughter sold some stuff on ebay for me; one was a purse that was a gift – it brought $180.
First (heh), how can you not drink beer at 7AM? Beer is delicious, and appropriate at any time of day.
I’m over ebay. To many people have the auto-bidding scripts and such to make it a worthwhile endeavor to me at those point.
I would digitize those CD’s before I sold them. Just in case.
Got my shirt today babies.
Sold University of Alabama football student tickets for over $400.00 on Ebay. I bought them for $35.
I am only a smidge Irish but still feel the need to get hammered every St. Patty’s Day. I would be drinking right now, but again with the BC frowning on me drinking at my desk.
Wally has used ebay but I have not. I keep shit until it needs to be thrown away (ie packrat) and buy all my shit in a store. Yeah, I am pretty lame!
Thanks for giving me something to look forward to Farty!
When I attend a WVU football game that starts at noon, you’ll likely find a beer in one of my hands and a shot of Jaeger in the other.
Oh, and that is at 7am or earlier.
I was tempted to have a green beer for lunch, but felt that my bosses might frown on that as well. My best moment of drunken St Patty’s day ridiculous was 2 years ago when my friend showed up to meet me at the bar and found me making out with a guy with dreads halfway down his back who spoke about 2 words of English and was, as I explained to her, from BALTA! …Is it 5:00 yet?
Have done lots of shopping on ebay over the years with only 1 bad incident – I mostly purchase things that are rare or hard to find elsewhere. I actually bought my last car, a 1980 Vette, on ebay as well. She was gorgeous, and I got a pretty good deal.
I have had very mixed experiences w ebay-I am not one of those people who have had 1,000 plus “sells or buys”. I have an excellent rating, though, and I have made some $ on very lightly used clothing. As a buyer, I have purchased extremely rare “paper” goods-very old catalogues, stock certificates, prints and historical maps, for literally $1.00-$10.00, when similar items at the local antique mall have the asking price of $90.00 -$400.00. You just have to know what you are looking for, and be willing to type in a lot of different “descriptions” to find what you want. I definitely think that ebay is a buyer’s market right now, at least for what I want! Good luck, y’all!
I am Irish on mom’s side, Welsh on dad’s. This means I love to drink, I just hate to pay for it. I have never been “bed-shitting drunk” but it’s still early.
awesome, second time my comment is “awaiting moderation”
Does Jason ever experience this-’cause my stuff is way lame compared to his stuff!!!!
I’m over 100 deals on ebay and feel pretty good about all of them. I have a co-worker who thought he was was bidding on a mint condition Xbox 360 system before Christmas which he eventually won for $180.
What arrived in the mail was the picture of the said deal, the same picture that was in the photo of the listing. If he had carefully read the listing he would have seen that is what was being sold, a photo. The title was misleading but buried deep in the listing was the truth. Poor schmuck. Wonder how many times that guy pulled that one off.
The reason for such early drinking in Scranton on “Parade Day” is that come parade time, the beers go up to $5 bucks (or so I remember). The Happy Hours are in the morning, then the bars charge a cover of $10 and raise the prices….it’s like their Black Friday. But if you’ve got a wad of money and a bunch of friends, Scranton on Parade Day is a pretty good drunk.
First! Woo-Hoo!
Oops, sorry ’bout that. Happy St Patty’s Day!
Now please move along, nothing to see here…
You haven’t been drinking all day if you didn’t start first thing in the morning.
I was away from eBay for a long time (got a big ol’ timeout for a simple misunderstanding), and when I came back the ratio of honest folks to hucksters seemed way, way too dicey to continue to bid there. I do use it for a convenient price guide for stuff.
I’ve never sold anything (what’reyoukiddingme? This is my STUFF, man!), but I did get a great deal on a Rank and File CD that was out of print. It’s available as a download Link (new window) now, but we’ve long since determined that that’s not the same thing, right?
And what’s this hub-bub about shirts? Are they done?
Back in the days of BC (before children) I use to sell a LOT of things on Ebay.
The weirdest ones for me….
A licensed MLB Texas Rangers Tie – I got it out of a toy crane for .50 cents. Sold it for $20 + shipping.
A cookie jar – bought 20+ at an outlet for .74 cents each. Sold every one of them for $20 or more.
A size 4T kids licensed MLB Seattle Mariners T-shirt – got at a store for $1.99. Sold for $50 + shipping.
A Harley Davidson licensed baby blanket – bought for $5 sold for $35.00.
For 2 years over Halloween I bought some really nice kids costumes for $10-20 each and sold them for $40+.
Jen
Crap.
I got to work before I realized its St. Patty’s day. What freakin planet have I been on?? You’d think the girl with red hair and freckles would know. Even my little people who normally spend all their time knowing everything didn’t tell me.
Anyway, I have always had good luck with ebay. It’s not always as profitable as it could be, something that should be cheap isn’t and so forth. I have had the best luck with shoes and purses, I bought a Tommy purse for 30.00 new and sold it for 78.00 plus used. Same thing with Born shoes the sexy librarian heels from the thrift store for $8.00 turned in to $130.00 in paypal. They were really hot shoes though. Probably should have kept them…
I’ve been drinking beer since 5am and there’s goddamn snakes everywhere!
Ebay huh? I love ebay. I got a like new patty duke love doll on there for only $9.99 last week. Shipping was a killer, but she’s worth every minute.
Oh what, this is supposed to be things we’ve sold? Hmmmm……..
Last! Yippee. I am the last poster for now! No one is after me (until later). You just can’t beat that with a stick.
I am 1/4 or more Irish (grandma would never let on who granddad was). To celebrate St Paddy’s, I am going to drink a whole metric buttload of O’Douls (my favorite Irish beer). It takes about 1,500 of those dang things before I start to feel buzzed.
One and only EbAy purchase: A porcelain Ringo Starr Figurine (with official certificate of authenticity). A true treasure indeed.
When I was manager of a video rental store we got Xbox and PS2 tie-ins to Pokemon & Yu-Gi-Oh. Included with the games were limited edition RPG game cards that were only available with the videogames. I put them on ebay starting price of $1.99 each. I was pleasantly suprised to see them go for more than $20 each.
I don’t do ebay much anymore because the majority of transactionsare done via Paypal and I don’t have an account. It’s a Catch 22 really — why would I need a Paypal account if I don’t use ebay/ I don’t use ebay because I don’t have a Paypal account.
St. Paddy’s Day…well, I’m not Irish..but the boyfriend is 100%. So, I guess I am by injection. OOOOOT!!!!!
Now Ebay is a different story. I love it for looking and researching but don’t sell anymore. Plus there is soo much garbage on there you kind have to wade thru the boolshit.
I sold (antiques/vintage collectables) for years when the fee’s were more reasonable and PayPal was free! Now everyone wants a piece of the pie…Ebay, PayPal, and your photo hosting site… all have their hand out waiting for a sheckle. So if you don’t sell, you still pay Ebay and hosting site fee’s… Ridiculous. That can take a bite out of your profits especially if you don’t sell the item!! Packing up and shipping the shit was a GIANT pain in the ass. I had bubblewrap and peanuts up the wazoo, which ain’t cheap. Also, finding boxes to fit the crap was a freaking job in itself.
The other thing that always frosted my cookies were stupid people who don’t R-E-A-D!! No matter how detailed your description is, there is always some dick-beater emailing you with a question that can be answered if they would just read the m-f”er.
Selling CD’s is at least easy to pack/ship. Maybe you could sell the decent one’s separately and the other’s as a “lot”. Who know’s…good luck with it. I look forward to an update declaring your insanity after dealing with the all jagoff’s!!
E-bay/Paypal is not like it used to be. They cater so much to the buyers now. If you are a seller and you have a dead-beat buyer that wins your item, but doesn’t bother to pay, you can’t even leave them negative feedback anymore! Paypal will not stand behind you if you are a seller either, and their fees will eat your profits very fast.
I don’t have a real job, I just sell on eBay.
Waaay back when I started on eBay selling, oddly enough, used CDs I bought at a record store while I was living in California. I sold 1000s of CDs. Mainly promos and deleted stuff, so a lot of CD singles. Best one? $500+ for an Oasis promo and sold many for $100s.
The bottom dropped out of the CD market years back. Unless you have lots of deleted stuff you’ll be wasting your time.
I was living in London while Irish terrorists were trying to kill people like me. I’ve watched the blood being hosed off the streets. I don’t do St. Patrick’s Day any more than I do Allah Day.
I have gone to Craig’s list. It doesn’t cost anything and is easy to use. I sold my last boat on a sat. and bought my present boat on sunday. All on craig’s list for free. Screw ebay…
in case you live under a rock( or in Scranton) the site is craigslist.org
Several years ago, I had lots of fun buying and selling on ebay.
Then, it went bad.
Fees went up. Forced to use PayPal, more fees there.
Getting bids from scammers in China. People bid, then cancel bids five minutes later. People win auctions and don’t pay. All bullshit now.
Ebay doesn’t give a shit. I hate it now. Never again.
Sift through and pick out the gems, then sell the rest as all or nothing. Done. One box…one shipping. Swapmeet types go (drool) for it that way. It’s just about Swapmeet season and soon your stuff will be out on their table in bins. I’m guessing the third tent on the left just up from the live pony merry-go-round.
Goddamn these snakes!!!
How about packaging your CDs in 10-20 CD bundles. That way you make people pay for the shitty ones to get the ones they really want. Think back to your record weasel days. How would those guys maximize revenue? You could add value by bundling them by theme, mood or year. How about a bundle containing only dead drummers?
I rarely shop on eBay anymore because I concur that it has gone downhill in recent years – though I’ve personally never had an unsatisfactory experience. My favorite item purchased (actually, my first) was a set of antique silverware in a beautiful inlaid wood box. I think I paid about $100 for it, which, given the size of the set and the quality of the box, was a complete steal. I kept wondering if the seller hadn’t made a mistake by not putting a reserve on the item. Sucka! (But that’s probably what he thought about me, too. Oh well.)
These days, I shop on a few sites that sell property seized by the gov’t. Have scored some nice paintings, a couple of which are a bit raunchy (and therefore not on open display in the living room), but they’re oh-so-cool. Though I’m over it now, I used to have nightmares about some angry drug dealer thug coming to repo the stuff.
St. Paddy’s Day…Huh?
Póg mo thóin
I sell on ebay. I buy things at goodwill for 25 cents and sell everything starting at 99 cents. I got $16.50 plus shipping for a sundress new with tags and a prom dress went for 12.50. I started selling because my husband is losing his job this week. I can do it from home which is a must because I have 4 kids still at home and it works for me. I agree do some as lots and you might be surprised what it brings.
The following is 100% true, although I couldn’t blame you if you didn’t believe me………….
In 1989 I taped A&E Network’s replay of NBC’s original news coverage of Apollo 11 [6 hours worth]; ten years later I sold a dubbed copy on eBay for $200………AND sold a second copy to the guy who didn’t win [he e-mailed me and begged me to sell him a copy as well]. $400 for TWO TAPES! Right item, right time & place, right bidders- will never happen again in my lifetime.
I haven’t used it in a few years, but I found selling books and cds at half.com a lot easier than ebay. You just post the stuff and ship it when it sells. They deal with collecting the money and you don’t have to deal directly with the buyers.
I sold an enormous toy collection on ebay, as well as lots of rock vinyl, promo items and memorabilia, etc. – over 2000 transactions in all over the years. It is a pain in the ass, but I’ve sold some stuff for amazing ridiculous prices, yet at the same time I had to let some items go for mere pennies on what they were worth. On each set of auctions I made it a policy to give the winner of the lowest priced item that item for free. People would shit when I told them, and they would always be sort of suspicious that there were strings attached, but then the item showed up in their mailbox they were always slightly shocked but happy. It all evened out in the end and it was good karma, as far as I’m concerned. I made lots of great trade connections through ebay, and people used to send me stuff all the time. It was great! I collected classic horror movie memorabilia and Rob Zombie used to outbid me on items all the time, that rich prick! ebay is such a scam now that I never sell anymore (besides, I’ve gotten rid of almost evrything I want to part with). I still buy occasionally, but I would crawl through broken glass naked before I would set up a freakin’ PayPal account.
Nope. Not ebay. Craig’s List. If only because you will be mailing locally (if mailing at all-some will come git it) and save on postage.
Instant cash without the BS of fees and waiting.
You are in a large enough area that you can pull this off.
I am selling another PC on Craigs List this weekend. They usually sell in an hour or two which is sweet.
The Woodstock Death Count didn’t fair too well at digg even though someone beat me to posting it
http://digg.com/music/The_Woodstock_Death_Count
( I simply do NOT understand their algo)
So I posted it among the crowd at MetaFilter
http://www.metafilter.com/80076/He-does-it-for-the-wood
Crosses fingers MeFi will give love to the wood